May 20, 2006	Saturday	Rabi-us-Sani 21, 1427

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LAHORE, May 19: The left bank of Lower Bari Doab Canal developed a 150 feet wide breach on Friday morning between Sahiwal and Harrapa towns, inundating farmland in seven villages and forcing the population to migrate to safe area.

According to Arif Nadeem, Punjab irrigation secretary, the apparent cause of the breach was roots of a big tree on the bank which were shaken by recent windstorms. But the department, he said, ordered an inquiry to confirm the exact cause and fix responsibility.

Some 8,000 cusecs of water released into the canal from the Baloki headworks were down to 4,000 at the breach point. The department, he said, had asked for gradual reduction in water supplies because the discharge in the gigantic water channel could not be switched off suddenly.

He said work to plug the gap would begin early Saturday after the water reduction took effect. “It may take some 24 hours to reconstruct the bank.”

He said two army and one agriculture department bulldozers had reached the spot along with several tractors, sand bags and other material.

Nadeem said cotton sowing in the LBDC command area in Sahiwal and Khanewal districts would be delayed by three to four days.

The district administration and an army contingent from Okara Cantonment also reached the area quickly to oversee the restoration work, he said. The district administration, according to him, had also decided to launch a survey of the area to see the effects of the calamity and look at the possibility of compensation. The railway and highway departments had also been informed accordingly. The damage had been limited to crops only because villages had moved to raised spots. The district administration had also arranged food for the marooned villagers. According to our Sahiwal correspondent, the canal water also inundated the railway track and GT Road, but the traffic was not affected. The authorities diverted the water flow towards the dry bed of Sukh Bias river and nearby drains to check further damage. According to APP, Punjab Irrigation Minister AamirSultan Cheema has ordered an enquiry into the causes of the breach to fix responsibility.